A ride up Ventoux by a mortal

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J1234 07 Feb 2021

This is a nice story, two ordinary people cycling up Ventoux, one on a commuter bike.

https://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/page/?o=3Ht&page_id=374450&v=Tq...

 Uluru 07 Feb 2021
In reply to J1234:

Thanks for posting this. Makes it seem possible for a mere mortal to cycle up there now!

 Richard Horn 07 Feb 2021
In reply to J1234:

I decided to ride up Mt Ventoux whilst on holiday in Provence a few weeks after buying my first proper road bike in 2012. At that time I could rock climb F7b+ and assumed rock climbing finesse would launch me well up the cycle climbing scale of ability - somewhat a miscalculation as by the time I got to the top I was being overtaken by silver-haired septuagenarians and seeing stars due to the altitude gain, I had to stop at least half a dozen times. Never been back although I plan to ride up Mt Ventoux again this week on my (lockdown star purchase) smart turbo trainer before the complimentary Rouvy trial period runs out.   

Amusing story, we stayed in a B&B on a vinyard and another couple were also staying. They tried Mt Ventoux from Bedoin and gave up a km from when it gets steep. 2nd attempt from Sault they ate lunch on the way up (why?) only for the slightly overweight chap to apparently vomit all over the road a few metres from the top...

 Rog Wilko 07 Feb 2021
In reply to J1234:

Hi Steve,

Debbie rode up Mt Ventoux in her 70th year. I rode some of it but kept going back down to pick up the van so we had it at the top. The grandchildren, about 10 at the time, were with us and they were allowed to buy some paint to write Go Nanny!  on the road. There’s a picture in my UKC gallery somewhere. 

J1234 07 Feb 2021
In reply to Rog Wilko:

Nice one Rog, I am not surprised Debbie rode up, but allez allez, or good effort

1
 Dave Cundy 07 Feb 2021
In reply to J1234:

I did Mont Ventoux 15 months ago.  I flew to Marseille and cycled up to Sault the next day, up through the Gorges de la Nesque (which is a stunning ride in itself).  I set off up MV after breakfast,  after taking the panniers off.  It was a gruelling 3 hrs, from Sault.  The bit up to Chateau Reynard is steady but long. long.

Then, you round the corner and the bleak summit cone stands in front of you and it's obvious that the gradient has got steeper.  And then the wind catches you, its 10 degrees  colder than when you set off.  Those last few k  form a stiff test and its a relief when you realise that you're passing the Tom Simpson memorial.  You can pay your respects and get a cheeky rest, a bit like a good knee-bar on grit!

The top soon comes and you want to stay longer but its cold.  Man, that wind!

The ride down's a breeze, 25-35 mph all the way, speed varying according to windchill and oncoming bends.

I had a crepe in Sault, by way of a celebratory lunch but it didn't do the trick.  I did 50 miles to Sisteron that afternoon and the gentle 400m climb up into the next valley was too much.  I had to have a rest every 30 mins.

Doing the Gorges and M Ventoux in 24 hrs was an absolutely two days out.

And the most mad thing?  Watching with astonishment on the way down, as i realised a guy was ascending MV, repleat with two big panniers.  Barking...

 Rog Wilko 07 Feb 2021
In reply to J1234:

Here she is Steve.


1
J1234 07 Feb 2021
In reply to Rog Wilko:

Thats great.

 nniff 07 Feb 2021
In reply to J1234:

The boris bike guy, on a Raleigh Chopper, standard except for increased saddle height...

youtube.com/watch?v=qNaqRgGOuQQ&

 lpretro1 09 Feb 2021
In reply to J1234:

I did this in 2019 at the age of 66 - I wasn't fast but got there in about 3 hours from Sault and then dropped over to Malaucene. We got the perfect day weatherwise - warm but not baking and no wind and no cloud. It is a long climb and I found the hardest part was the last 6 km from Chalet Reynard as you are out of the trees and it is rather barren. The summit is nearly always on view winking at you but seem to take ages to get closer. You just have to get into a steady rhythm and tune your mind to the fact it is going to take a while- the road surface is very good which helps. I'm not a superfit bike rider but I did as many hilly miles as I could before going which I'd recommend.  It was something I had always wanted to do since I was a kid so very chuffed to finally make it. And I now have a lovely framed photo on my wall thanks to the roadside photographers - they put their cards in your jersey pocket as you ride by so you don't have to stop! The descent was a bit scary at times especially at the top as you are right on the edge of the cliffs and it is a long way down, then the hairpins are a bit exciting as you can end up going so fast but after a few km I got used to it and was more confident. A nice stop off at Chalet Leotard for coffee and pancakes on the way down to Malaucene was most welcome and another stop there for ice creams before cycling the last 10km to our accommodation

Post edited at 14:51
 Basemetal 09 Feb 2021
In reply to lpretro1:

Chapeau!

 Enty 09 Feb 2021
In reply to J1234:

Love stories like this.

We've got some great stories from living at the foot of the mountain for the last 18 years. Some of my favourite Ventoux stories include:

A 70 year old guy from Miami who's biggest climb on his bike in the last 30 years was a motorway bridge. He did Ventoux.

A phone call from the café at Chalet Reynard when one of our guests was sat by the fire and refused to go outside and ride down on his bike - too cold.

A young girl from NZ who left after breakfast and was back for lunch having ridden all 3 ascents.

Once did a midnight full-moon ascent to find a car on the summit rocking away nicely with all the windows steamed up.

A guy from Denmark who had lost 14 stone training for Ventoux. He did it.

Riding with Dominik Hasek and not knowing who he was.

I've loads more.

E

 Dave B 10 Feb 2021
In reply to Enty:

Please. More stories... 

 Enty 10 Feb 2021
In reply to Dave B:

One time I had a group of lads riding the Cinglé Challenge. This is where you ride all three ascents of the mountain in the same day. 

It was a hot day and it's an hour ride to Bedoin from here so they set off a 6am. I set off in the car with water supplies to drive over the mountain from the north side and down the other side - timing it to meet them half way up.

As I drove up the deserted Malaucene side at 6:30am about 4km from the top, I rounded a bend and right there in the middle of the road was a guy lying on his back, arms and legs outstretched, his bike next to him and a bead of blood in the corner of his mouth.

I got out of the car, heart pounding. I'd been up and down that mountain 3 to 4 times a week for the last ten years. I'd obviously heard many stories about deaths on the mountain but never seen a body or a really serious accident - thankfully.

I walked over to the body. Just as I leant over to inspect him he raised his torso like Frankenstein on the operating table and shouted at me " where the f*ck am I?" (In broad Scottish 😂)

Well I jumped about 2 metres in the air absolutely shit my pants.

After we'd both calmed down and he'd regained his composure I explained the situation. Thankfully he'd fallen off on the way up, at about 6kmh instead of the way down at 60kmh. We think he'd blacked out. I offered him a lift to the café where he could get a coffee and phone his wife but he refused. Nothing I could do could persuade him to have a lift.

His last words as I got back in the car were "I'll get up this mountain if it f*cking kills me " 

I never saw him again. 

E

Post edited at 09:31
 Jim Lancs 10 Feb 2021
In reply to J1234:

What is this Mont Ventoux of which you speak?

It's sounds very similar to what we in Le Club de Cent Cols call the "Col des Tempêtes". 

(I only mention this to bring the petty squabbles within the French (and British) long distance cycling community to a wider audience).

 Enty 10 Feb 2021
In reply to Jim Lancs:

Yeah Col des Tempetes is 500m from the summit on a left hand bend. Theres a 50cm high wall protecting you from the Mistral wind which has traveled 200km to get there.  It's where you get blown off 😉

E

J1234 10 Feb 2021
In reply to Jim Lancs:

> What is this Mont Ventoux of which you speak?

>

Its what everyone calls The Rake in Rammy, why where did you think it was?

 Jim Lancs 10 Feb 2021
In reply to J1234:

In some French cycling circles, they don't count climbs to ski resorts or to mountain summits. They only count cols - hence the name of the club for these aficionados is Le Club de Cent Cols. It's 100 logged cols from their published list (can't be the same one from the two sides either) to qualify for membership. So to them, Mt Ventoux is properly known as Col des Tempetes and the climb to Alp d'Huez is the Col de Sarenne, etc. 

It's the same 'insider rules' like red point, beta, on sight, that every sport enjoys. But the CdCC takes it a whole league further and has awards for different levels with lovely badges you sew on your Nelson Longflap.

The British affiliate was the Ordre de Cols Dur, but membership withered when I guess they realised the abbreviation was OCD. Fancy that, a club with tick lists, strict definitions,  . . . 

J1234 10 Feb 2021
In reply to Jim Lancs:

Ah, so The Rake is the "Col de Shoulder of Mutton"

 Enty 10 Feb 2021
In reply to Jim Lancs:

> So to them, Mt Ventoux is properly known as Col des Tempetes and the climb to Alp d'Huez is the Col de Sarenne, etc. 

>

I don't understand this.
If you do Mont Ventoux from the Malaucene side and go down the same way you can't log the Col des Tempetes. Ventoux summit and The Col des Tempetes are two completely different things.

Same with Alpe d'Huez. The Col de Sarenne is 9km further and 200m higher than Alpe d'Huez town.

E

 Jim Lancs 10 Feb 2021
In reply to Enty:

> I don't understand this.

Well, it's their club, their rules. You have to go 'over' a col to log it as being 'done'. Dead ends and summits don't count.

So 'to do' the Col de Tempetes you will have to go past the summit of Ventoux on your route, but simply going up to the summit and back from Malaucene doesn't count.  The same with Alp d'Huez - simply riding up to the town doesn't count - you have to go on to the Col de Serenne.

I think the origins were so they didn't have to specify where the 'top' might be on every ski village access road, especially as extra car parks or extensions might be added at some point. A named col is a very easily identified specific point.  

But it's all arbitrary - they don't let you count the same col twice even if you climb up a different side from sea level each time, but you get the Telegraph on your way to the Galibier, you can nip to the Croix de Fer from the top of the Glandon and I was still freewheeling from the previous col when I arrived at the 'top' of the Col de la Machine in the Vercors.

In the days before the internet, their magasine was an eye opener into the world of alpine / mountain cycling. I read the accounts and was inspired to emulate those with 1000 passes, etc. And you would learn to recognise their cycling tops and speaking to them on the road got you masses of local information about interesting routes, including old, unsurfaced military roads, etc. 

 Enty 11 Feb 2021
In reply to Jim Lancs:

Right got that. If you want to log a famous top which isn't a col log the nearest col. Sort of makes sense.

I actually have a 100 cols certificate from about 2006 when I joined for a couple of years and looged all my cols. Think I had about 130. I was well chuffed until i saw the current leader who had over 5k
The website looks a lot slicker nowadays but they still sell that horrible jersey

Take care,

E

 Dave B 11 Feb 2021
In reply to J1234:

Anyone here done the zwift version and the in real life version

Post edited at 11:21

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